More signs of turmoil are emerging in Iran’s US negotiating team as hardliner Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf is set to be replaced by a veteran conservative known for rejecting nuclear concessions.
Iran International reported on April 24 that 60-year-old Saeed Jalili – who has previously been described as a “shadow government” – is expected to succeed Ghalibaf after his sudden departure amid internal disputes.
Jalili also heads Iran’s ultra-radical faction Stability Front (Pedari), known as “the bastion of ultraconservatism in Iran”.
Ali Safavi, an official with the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), an Iranian opposition coalition, told Fox News Digital that Jalili had “evolved from a nuclear negotiator to an influential actor in the regime.”
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Ghalibaf’s successor is expected to be Jalili Saeed after his sudden departure amid internal disputes.
(Getty Images)
Ghalibaf was forced to resign after trying to negotiate the nuclear issue with Washington, a move that sparked a backlash from Iran’s political establishment.
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The rivalry between Jalili and Ghalibaf has lasted more than a decade and is said to have intensified in the 2024 elections, when Jalili refused to contribute to the victory of President Massoud Pezhekian.
Safavi said, “The growing visibility of secret divisions stems from recurrent nationwide uprisings, deepening economic crises and the pressures of war, all of which have intensified internal strife.
“Far from a symbolic transformation, these developments reflect rapid erosion and mounting pressure, deepening fractures and making governance weaker and more fragile,” he added.
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Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf speaks at a press conference in Tehran, Iran, Nov. 27, 2024.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is also seeking a continued leadership role in the talks, the sources said, highlighting the competing centers of influence in Iran’s diplomatic strategy.
Argachi is in Islamabad, Pakistan, after returning from a brief visit to Muscat, Oman, where he is holding high-level diplomatic talks on the conflict. Reports indicated that Araghchi would move to Moscow.
Jalili’s possible appointment signals a hardening of Iran’s stance and a greater emphasis on deterrence in the deal.
“Within this regime, there are many constants supported by all factions,” Safavi said, before highlighting that these were “repression, the export of terrorism and the pursuit of nuclear weapons.”
“All factions ultimately move towards a common path: the preservation of power. They differ in methods, not objectives,” Safavi warned.
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Jalili, meanwhile, served as Iran’s top nuclear negotiator from 2007 to 2013 under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and later ran for president three times.
Jalili, meanwhile, served as Iran’s top nuclear negotiator from 2007 to 2013 under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and later ran for president three times. He also served as Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council.
A former member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Jalili lost his right leg at the age of 21 during the Iran-Iraq War, earning him the title of “living martyr”.
The Pedari Front, to which he is affiliated, opposes engagement with the West – particularly the 2015 nuclear deal – and advocates the principle of “active resistance”.
During Hassan Rouhani’s presidency, Jalili established a “shadow government” to oppose the administration’s policies, particularly the nuclear deal.
On April 7, he wrote in X: “Yes – the ‘infrastructure’ is on the verge of collapse; the infrastructure of dominance and the American system. And after that, a better foundation will be built.”
A day earlier, he posted: “‘Shut up’ is not an appropriate response to Trump’s tantrums; let him speak more. Nothing more effective than Trump’s tantrums to the true nature of the United States.”
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“In dealing with this regime,” Safavi said, “we must bear in mind that in the 45 years since the mullahs consolidated their rule by crushing all peaceful political life in 1981, so-called reformists have ruled for almost half the time – presiding over some of its darkest crimes.”
“These include the 1988 massacre of 30,000 political prisoners, the killing of dissidents abroad, the serial killing of intellectuals inside Iran and the relentless pursuit of nuclear weapons.”
Original article source: Iran’s upheaval: Trump’s mockery of ultra-hardliners poised to take on nuclear talks
